When my four-year-old daughter, Chloe, begged me to leave my girlfriend Lily’s house, I knew something was terribly wrong. Her fear wasn’t like the usual little-kid fears. It was raw and shaking, and no matter how badly I wanted to calm her down, the urgency in her trembling voice made my stomach twist. “Chloe, don’t forget your jacket,” I called while grabbing my car keys from the counter. “I don’t need it, Daddy!” she shouted back from the closet. I could hear her rummaging around for her favorite sparkly sneakers.

Arlene was both nervous and proud that morning. She was sending her seven-year-old son, Justin, on a plane all by himself. He was flying from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Virginia to see his father, Pierce, in Orlando. It was the first time Justin had ever traveled alone, and even though he was excited, Arlene’s heart felt heavy. Luckily, the airline attendant was kind and reassuring.“Don’t worry, Mrs. Cardigan,” the woman told her gently. “Many kids his age fly alone every single day. He’ll be escorted the whole time,

I never thought I’d be sharing my personal life online, but after what happened at my husband’s birthday party, I think my story deserves to be told. This is about how the man I loved tried to humiliate me in front of everyone—and how I turned the tables on him in the most satisfying way possible. How It All Began I met Gregor later in life, when I was already in my forties. Honestly, I wasn’t even looking for love anymore. The idea of marriage had died for me after